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Home / Mushimba launches venture capital fund for women entrepreneurs
Mushimba launches venture capital fund for women entrepreneurs
2018-07-19Staff Report 2 Edgar Brandt WINDHOEK - A new funding option for women entrepreneurs, called the Good Women Good Business Venture Capital Fund, was launched in the capital yesterday. The fund enables women entrepreneurs to secure funding via a venture capital model that includes equity funding. According to Uyama Mushimba, founder of the Good Women Good Business network, the minimum funding is N$250 000 while there is no maximum amount the fund will not consider. Good Women Good Business is a network for women doing well in business. The network is the brain child of Mushimba who has described her own entrepreneurial journey as being filled with ups and downs. “We classify a good woman as someone who lives by and is grounded by the principles of our authentic African heritage in the spirit of togetherness. We also encourage women to generate income using their God-given gifts and talents to make a difference in themselves, for their families and to their communities. In the network we talk real business, we talk sustainability, we discuss economic impact and how we are contributing to the national GDP and how we can complement the efforts of the government and mould ourselves into unofficial business and trade diplomats for the Namibian government,” said Mushimba at yesterday’s launch. She added that the venture capital fund was initiated in response to the funding challenge many women face when starting their businesses. “The thinking was why not mobilise funding to entrepreneurs who are in the growth phase of their business but aren’t able to secure capital due to various factors,” Mushimba explained. According to the Fund Manager for Good Women Good Business, Charmaine Nyandoro, the fund is committed to investing in entities that have functioning business models at different levels by offering a diversification framework of funding arrangements in the venture capital space. “Our fund is solely based on the venture capital model for investing in businesses that are in the high growth phase, basically businesses with a track record and solid cash flow projections. “Our approach is equity-based funding. In other words, we give funding for a portion of equity in your business. Our defining concept is the fact that we will be active in the business’ daily operations and will be taking the risk with you that comes with growth entrepreneurship,” said Nyandoro. She added that the network will supply highly qualified experts in all the business departments, from marketing, finance, and operations to leadership to ensure sustainability. “All our investments are carefully selected based on the merit by our investment and portfolio management, using the top down approach. Our exit strategy is clear from the onset. We will always give the proprietor right of first refusal to buy back their equity at a value to be determined by buyer and seller. The other option is where we bring in a private equity partner to take over our portion of the equity.” 2018-07-19Staff Report 2
